I last updated this site regarding biblical language access for people who are blind in 2016. Some strides have been made since that time, and a new update is in order.
The situation with regard to technology remains much the same. BibleWorks is no longer available; so the current options for software are Accordance and Logos. I have not tried Accordance myself; and the rumblings I have heard regarding usability are disappointing. Logos is usable on the Iphone/Ipad, but sales and customer service reps admit openly that it is not considered accessible for screen reader users on the PC in its current version. This is exceedingly disappointing, especially since Faithlife is actively engaging seminaries in an attempt to make Logos a viable option for classroom use. I continue to remind them that an inaccessible product brings seminaries out of compliance with legal requirements in the U.S. and Canada and also that until I can use Logos myself, I will not require it in my own classes.
I have personally transcribed some 14 or 15 grammars and reference materials into braille since 2014. The most difficult and significant of these was the NA28 Greek New Testament. In order to do this, it was necessary for me to invent a way to represent the apparatus. I would like to do the same with the BHS. Currently there is no critical edition of the Hebrew Bible with apparatus or marginal notes available to braille readers.
It is possible at this time for transliterated languages to be transcribed into braille. I say this with an addendum: this type of transcription should not be done automatically, as the Semitic scholars committee has not covered every possible scenario and occasionally we encounter symbols that are not included in the Duxbury templates. Please do not run transliterated material through Duxbury and give it to a student without having it proofread.
The limits of the Duxbury translation software are important to discuss here. This software has made the work of braille transcription much easier. It doesn’t mean that a human is unnecessary, particularly where ANE languages are concerned. Often things are printed in columns, and it is important that the human reinterpret those columns in a way that makes reading meaningful for the reader who is blind. Columns can mean numerous things: they can compare things to each other (and often do in this setting); they can make way for the next portion of reading to make it visually appealing; they can present data in a complex relational format (e.g. a paradigm)… What is done with these columns in braille differs each time. So I always recommend using a braille transcriber instead of relying solely on Duxbury’s automation.
Our greatest need in the field of biblical studies right now is for grammars and reference materials in Hebrew, Akkadian, Aramaic, Arabic, and other Semitic languages. This I say from the perspective of a professor and a person who is in contact with blind people who are attempting to study these languages.
From the perspective of a person who is transcribing (my other job), several things need to come together to make this happen:
First, the transcriber needs texts in Unicode format. Without this, the texts have to be retyped manually. This slows progress tremendously. If you are an author or publisher, and your text has been produced in PDF with custom fonts embedded, I can almost assure you that Unicode format is gone. I will take this moment to call for publishers, in particular, to please help us out by educating themselves and giving access to Unicode files.
Second, funding needs to be available. I have turned down at least ten requests due to lack of funding. This should never happen in this field. A request refused means that someone cannot pursue their studies. We need another way. A 300-page French book costs me $2,500 to produce. The cost for ANE languages is about $4,500 per 300 pages. As you can imagine, this is not funding that small seminaries have. We need a better way. Once a book is transcribed once, it remains in digital braille form and can be distributed to the next student who needs it. Until now, the sponsor of some of these projects has been a small nonprofit organization, the Bartimaeus Alliance of the Blind. Their mission is not to produce ANE language materials; however, they have graciously digitized some older materials that were previously transcribed and donated. Other projects on which I have worked have been sponsored by individual universities. Sometimes universities agree to release projects if they know there is a need. I would like to see a better solution in which authors and publishers actively support the accessibility of ANE and classics grammars and reference materials.